Mass Effect: Double Trouble
by Leman of the Russ
Summary: Written after completing ME3. What would happen if there were two Shepard's, and how would that affect the plotline? Basically me trying to make the story of ME even better. It follows the careers and personal lives of Graham and Michael Shepard. Pairings Mshep/Liara and Mshep/Ashley. Basically a mash-up of my soldier and engineer playthroughs.
1. Chapter 1

**Sorry i havent updated for so long! School's been hell and I also got a ton of new things at Christmas so I've been thoroughly distracted. Anyway my new ME fanfic! Read, review and enjoy!**

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Udina sat at a large table in the Parliament chambers of Arcturus Station, sifting through numerous personnel files. This was the part he hated most, trying to find a Spectre candidate out of thousands of people. Like trying to find a microscopic needle in a haystack, as his mentor has once put it. Around him sat the Admirals of the Alliance Navy, each expectant to see who would be chosen as the first human Spectre. He scanned down the file of another marine, sighed as yet another soldier failed to meet the mark, then his eyes wandered over a very curious file. It was still a personnel file, but instead of having information on one soldier, as was the norm, it had info on two. His eyes scanned the row of aged and scarred faces around him, then raised the data-pad. "Ok" he said, his voice betraying his irritation "what smart-assed butt-kisser thought this would be funny?" As soon as he finished that sentence, a deep booming laugh was heard coming from the other side of the room. Udina looked up to see Captain Anderson doubling over, his dark-skinned face broken in a huge grin. "Care to share the joke Captain?" Udina asked, his voice dripping with venom. Anderson regained control of his breathing and his face deadpanned, years of military training kicking in. "The two people of which you refer to, Udina, are the twins Graham and Michael Shepard." He said, his deep baritone voice easily carrying across the room. Murmurs of recognition passed through the room, as the assembled Admirals recognised the name of two of the most promising marines in the Navy. "You mean the Wolf-Brothers?" one of the Admirals asked, using the twin's unofficial nickname amongst the rank-and-file. Anderson nodded "The very same" he replied "One strong and brave, one smart and cunning, yet both as noble as each other." That was how every single commanding officer that the twins had served under had described them. They had survived untold horrors together, fought on countless battlefields together, and every time they had fought back-to-back, watching each other, keeping each other safe. Udina mulled thoughtfully over this new information and returned his attention to their file.

They had both grown up on naval warships with their mother, Hannah Shepard, and their father, Daniel. Graham had decided to follow in his mother's footsteps, joining the Alliance as a marine and passed training with flying colours to proceed to receive N7 training. Whereas his brother preferred the 'run-and-gun' approach, Michael had decided to follow his father and become a combat engineer. He had spent three years prior at New York's tech academy and come out top of his class, then had gone through basic training with his brother and had applied for N7 training at exactly the same time. After that they had been inseparable. They had insisted on being in the same unit, the same patrol and the same squad. "They proved themselves during the Blitz" Admiral Hackett said, bringing up one of the most important parts of their career history "held off enemy forces on the ground until reinforcements arrived." The Admirals began to chat amongst themselves excitedly, remembering that famous event as if it was only yesterday. Anderson nodded to Hackett, then said "They're the only reason Elysium is still standing." Udina took in this news, pondering over the possibilities. "We can't question their courage" he said finally, his eyes roaming the faces of the other Admirals for any sign of opposition. And of course, as he had come of expect, there was one, but only one. Rear-Admiral Mikhailovich, one of the more vocal members of the Admiralty, cried out in anger "Why them?!" The entire room went silent as everyone turned to stare at the angry Russian. "Is there a problem Admiral?" Udina asked, his voice suspiciously bland. The Rear-Admiral rose from his chair, his hands shaking with rage. "Of course there is!" he roared, his anger evident in his harsh tone "Why are we choosing one- no, TWO, incompetent fools as Spectre candidates when I have at least twenty officers three times as qualified as they are!" There was a chorus of gasps and sharp intakes of breath as the assembled officers realized what the man was trying to say. Anderson's face hardened into an unreadable mask and Hackett's hardened to granite. "Are you suggesting this council is wrong, Admiral?" Hackett hissed, his voice like that of a pit viper "I would choose your next words carefully Mikhailovich, for they could be your last." Anderson emphasised the point by placing his hand on the butt of his pistol at his hip. Mikhailovich's face turned deathly white as he realized his mistake, and frantically back-pedalled. "Of course not" he replied, his voice slightly shaking "I was merely trying to express my-" he was interrupted by Anderson smashing his fist into the poor admiral's gut. "I think we all know the real reason for your outburst" Udina said turning towards the window, his voice weary "and personally I think you should really have grown up by now, after all you've seen." He turned to Hackett and Anderson. "Humanity needs heroes" Anderson continued, walking back to his place beside Hackett "and the Shepards are the best we've got." Udina merely nodded, saying "I'll make the call" and walked towards the door, effectively adjourning the session. As the others began to leave, William Coryn, Commander of all the Alliance troops, walked over to Anderson and said "I think you went a bit too far David, punching Mikhailovich like that." Anderson looked up at the Admiral, his trade-mark grin already on his face. "Maybe I did" he said "but it felt damn good." And with that, both of them burst out laughing. Hackett looked over at the two laughing officers and smiled a warm smile. Looking at people laughing always made him feel slightly younger than his years, a rare gift in his profession. "Anderson, don't you have to check on your XOs?" he asked, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Anderson stood up and adjusted his uniform. "Indeed I do, so Admirals I must bid you farewell." He saluted the two men before leaving the conference chamber. He headed to the most likely place the twins would be, the nearest night-club.

Graham Shepard laughed as he watched his brother trying desperately to stop himself falling over he stumbled over to the bar. Michael Shepard had always been a light-weight when it came to alcohol, a trait he got from his mother, along with her blonde hair and blue eyes. Graham on the other hand had inherited his father's storm-grey eyes and jet-black hair, which he kept very short in accordance with military protocol. They had both inherited their father's muscular build, each of them standing just over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and muscles looking like they had been chiselled from granite. Michael looked at his brother, his short blonde hair hanging over one eye, his face flushed. "C'mon Gray" he shouted over the pounding bass of the club music "have a drink!" he pushed a bottle towards his brother, who snatched it up in one hand and downed its entire contents in one long gulp. All the other marines around him watched in awe as he downed the 750ml bottle of Bekenstein whiskey in one go, barely breathing as the alcohol burned its way down his gullet. He slammed the empty bottle back down on the counter and looked around at the others. "Why are you all looking at me like that?" he asked, utterly confused "Do I something in my teeth or what?" And with that, the entire room burst in gales of raucous laughter, followed by marines falling off their chairs. Even Michael found it hard to keep a straight face. "Seriously Gray? You down a 750 bottle of whiskey in one then ask if you have something in your teeth?" he shook head in mock despair then clapped his brother on the shoulder, before promptly falling flat on his face as he tried to walk away. Graham merely chuckled and hoisted his brother up with an arm round his shoulders. "C'mon Mike" he said "I think you've had a few too many." He was about to open the door when Anderson walked in. "Commander" he said by way of greeting, then noticed Mike hanging limp from his shoulder, and he smiled "Ah, I see, hitting the good stuff were we?" Graham chuckled softly as Mike mumbled something unintelligible in his drunken half-stupor. "You could say that sir" he said, hefting his brother slightly higher across his shoulders. Anderson couldn't help but chuckled, his rich voice bubbling up from his chest like magma. "Alright Gray, I want you and Mike on the _Normandy_ by 0700 tomorrow, and try to make sure your brother isn't throwing up all over the deck, it doesn't look good on reports." Graham saluted Anderson to the best of his ability, all the while grinning like an idiot. "Aye sire, guess I'll be seeing you in the morning" he replied walking out of the club, Mike shuffling along beside him. Anderson merely shook his head; he did not want to be them in the morning. He began humming as he walked back to the _Normandy_; tomorrow was going to be an interesting day.


	2. Chapter 2: The leave-taking

**Sorry for the long wait, once again school's decided to be an utter pain in the ass. Anyway, here's the next chapter, it focusses mainly on the relationship between the twins. Read, rate, review and enjoy.**

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"Ow, my head!" Mike cried out as he rose groggily from his bed in the apartment he shared with Graham, his hand clutching his temple, feeling like someone was pounding a very large stake through his brain. Graham walked out of the shower-room dressed in his freshly ironed uniform, his hair clean, his stubble trimmed.

"You knew what would happen" he said, his voice sounding slightly condescending. Mike merely shot him a death glare and replied "Yeah well, not all of us have livers of fucking titanium." and stormed off to have a shower. Graham merely sighed and shook his head; it seemed Mike had also inherited their mother's foul mouthed approach to hangovers. He then set about having breakfast; that always cheered up his brother. As he started frying some bacon Mike walked out of the shower with a towel round his waist, steam rising from his still dripping form. Graham looked up then immediately clapped his hand over his eyes.

"Oh God!" he cried with mock horror "Seriously Mike, can you at least warn me before you do that?" Mike merely grinned and walked over to his room to get changed.

Once he walked out, he called "I'm gone now, your sanity's safe." Graham uncovered his eyes and set about cooking up their morning fry-up. He cooked up six rashes of bacon, four sausages, two slices of fried bread and two eggs, the perfect breakfast for any soldier. As he began to serve it up Mike walked out of his room in his own uniform, exactly identical to Graham's. He sniffed the air, then a wide grin split his face "Ah, I do love the smell of bacon in the morning" he said, his hangover evidently cured by his shower and he walked over and accepted the plate from his brother, the ceramic straining under the weight of all the food stacked on it.

They both sat down at the large oak table in the middle of the room and began to devour their breakfast, each one shovelling in food like it would be their last meal, eating enough for six men each. After stuffing their faces full of food, they washed the dishes, set them back in their respective places, and set about packing their meagre belongings. They each only had around one duffle bag of things, but they both had their own acoustic guitar, hand-crafted for them by their father for their third birthday. They were their most prized possessions, and each one knew exactly how much the other's guitar meant to them. Graham also had an electric guitar, and Mike had a bass, but they had already been stored aboard the _Normandy_ on Anderson's orders, but they always kept their acoustics with were their only reminder of home.

Once they had packed their respective belongings, they slung their duffle bags over one shoulder, their guitars over the other, and left their apartment for the _Normandy's_ docking bay, letting the door of their home hiss shut silently behind them. They walked confidently down the corridor, each one sure of themselves in the others presence. They arrived at the airlock of their new home at 06:50. She was a marvel of engineering, smooth hull plates flowing seamlessly together into one majestic bird of war. Graham rapped his knuckles on the outer hull, producing a dull thunking sound. Mike merely shook his head and face-palmed.

"What?" Gray asked "Remember what Dad always said 'If no one seems to be there, knock'" Mike merely sighed and activated his omni-tool.

"He also said that assuming you had already tried contacting them over comms and got no answers." he replied, typing furiously at the keyboard. "SSV Normandy? This is Commander Michael and Graham Shepard, awaiting permission to board." he said into his communicator.

The airlock door began to hiss open, with Anderson saying "Welcome aboard Commander, we heard you the first time." Graham shot Mike a sly smirk and strolled into the airlock, followed by his sighing twin. "Stand by shore party, decontamination in progress" intoned the ships VI as the airlock re-pressurized. With a hiss of steam the inner airlock slid open, revealing the sleek interior of their new home. As they walked out of the airlock, crewmen looked up from their work-stations to stare at them as they walked passed. They strolled towards the giant galaxy map at the far end of the command deck, idling spinning in a continuous loop. They saw Anderson approach them from the briefing room, and saluted him as he approached.

"Reporting for duty, sir!" Graham said, almost involuntarily, years of military training having been drilled into his brain. Anderson returned their salute, then beckoned for them to follow him. They walked slightly behind Anderson as he led them back into the briefing room he had just vacated. They both stood stock still when Anderson turned to them.

"Well gentlemen" he said, his voice tinged with slight amusement "welcome to the _Normandy_, your new home. Both of you will act as the XO of this vessel" he suddenly smiled "I know how you two work." The twins openly stared at the captain, slack-jawed; no one knew how much they depended on each over! They practically acted as one person in two bodies. It was how they survived N7 training, survived Elysium, and came to the attention of the Citadel Council in the first place. At the sight of their reaction, Anderson couldn't restrain his amusement anymore, and burst into a rare fit of laughter, holding on to one of the chairs to stop himself collapsing on the floor. There was a snort of amusement from behind the twins, and they turned towards its source, their jaws shutting with an audible _click_.

Behind them, leaning on the wall, was a turian with white facial markings and a suit of midnight-black armour. His obsidian eyes watched the two with suspicion and wry amusement. When he noticed them looking at him he stood up and walked over to them, offering his hand. "A pleasure to meet you, Commanders" he said, addressing both of them "Nihlus Kryik, Special Tactics and Recon" Again the faces of the two brothers assumed a surprised expression, eyes widening and faces slightly paling.

"It's an honour sir" Graham finally managed to say, shaking Nihlus's hand, with Mike quickly following suit. Graham turned back to Anderson, an eyebrow raised "Sir I have to ask" he said, his voice full of confusion "why is there a Spectre aboard a stealth frigate?" Anderson's smile turned sickly.

"You will know all in good time Commander" was all he would say on the issue. "For now I recommend introducing yourselves to the crew." The brothers nodded then excused themselves and went to stash their gear. Nihlus watched as they left, his eyes slowly appraising the pair, examining them from every possible angle, then turned to face Anderson.

"Are you sure they're ready?" he asked, his flanged voice sounding slightly dubious. Anderson nodded

"Those two are the finest we have" he replied, pride slightly tinging his voice "they've seen more combat than more military personnel see in two tours." Nihlus however remained dubious, he had heard that many times, and those people had ended up as a fine paste on the floor on their first assignment. _I'll need to keep an eye on those two_ he thought, his mind already calculating the number of ways he could test them whilst on-board the _Normandy_. "I think I'll prepare for departure" Anderson said idly, his eyes unfocused. Nihlus merely nodded and watched thoughtfully as the captain wandered off. _What's he not telling me?_ he thought, his mind abuzz with possibilities, as the crew prepped for take-off.


	3. Chapter 3-Politics and complications

**Sorry for the late update, school decided it would be a great idea to make us have six exams in three days, so that kinda blocked me. Anyway, I thought I'd take a break from the Maelstrom and do more of this, so here we are. Read, review and enjoy.**

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The _Normandy_ left Arcturus that same day, leaving the station behind for its shakedown run. Graham was amazed at how quietly she ran. He had grown up on ships where the sound of the drive core was so loud it made sleeping impossible. The _Normandy _however flew through the void on silent wings, her presence barely noticed.

He surveyed the training room, his eyes scanning every inch of space in extreme detail. He could pick out every scratch; every bolt, every minute aspect of the room. He stood leaning against one of the walls; his eyes alert, every sense straining its limits to detect anything unusual. He had stood there since they had left Arcturus, looking out of one of the portholes in silence as his home had drifted out of view. He had remained there, contemplating what could possibly happen, until Michael had walked in.

"Gray?" he said, concerned. Graham merely nodded to his brother, his eyes locked in the distance. "What's wrong Gray?" Mike pressed "This isn't you." Graham merely snorted.

"This isn't me?" he echoed "you of all people should better than that Mike." He turned to look his brother in the eye. "This is me, the side no one else ever sees." His eyes grew haunted, and his face turned solemn. "We survived Elysium, but tell me, how much of your soul came back with you?" His voice dropped to a whisper "I lost some of mine down there, Mike. The best of it." Michael noticed tears beginning to well up in his brother's eyes. "I lost my values down there. I lost my integrity, my self-belief, and I don't know what's left."

He began to break down, his breath coming in irregular hiccups, and the tears began sliding down his face. Mike merely drew his brother in for a comforting hug as Graham completely broke down and cried, burying his head in Mike's shoulder.

"Shh, it's ok, I'm here" he whispered, gently stroking the back of his brother's head. They remained thus for roughly five minutes, Graham holding on to Mike like a sailor would a piece of driftwood when shipwrecked, all the while sobbing like a broken-hearted child. Eventually he calmed down enough to regain some self-control.

"I'm ok, I'm ok" he said, breathing deeply to try and control his thundering heart. He straightened his shoulders and rose to his full height, once again looking like the veteran soldier everyone knew him to be. Mike gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder then left the room. Graham sighed, checked that his heavy armour was all intact and in place, then followed Mike to the cockpit to see how things were proceeding.

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They walked side by side, in perfect step, each moved synchronized. They walked passed numerous officers, nodding to them in greeting, and made their way to wear Flight Lieutenant Jeff 'Joker' Moreau, the _Normandy's_ pilot and Kaiden Alenko, the head of the ship's marine outfit, sat, preparing to run the ships through its paces. They heard Joker's voice over the comm saying"Relay is hot, all stations prepare for transit"

They stood behind Joker flight couch as his deft fingers danced across the displays and interfaces arranged before him, his face a mask of concentration. He seemed completely at ease sitting in his chair, as if he had no other wish than to just keep flying. "Hitting the relay in 3…2…1" he continued as the entire ship shook ever so slightly, signifying it had just been flung over several thousand light-years in mere seconds by a mass relay.

The two brothers looked up and noticed Nihlus standing right beside them, having silently walked into the cockpit without anyone else noticing. "All systems look good. Stealth system online, drift…just under 1500 k." Nihlus straightened from where he had been leaning on one of the bulkheads.

"1500 is good" he said, his flanged voice devoid of all emotion "your captain will be pleased" and with that, he turned at walked away, leaving the others standing there, dumbstruck.

Joker merely turned back to face his console and said simply "I hate that guy."

Kaiden snorted and replied with "Nihlus gave you a compliment, so you hate him?" The two Shepards leaned in closer to hear the conversation.

"You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom, that's good. I just jumped us half-way across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead, so that's incredible" Joker continued, his voice rising with indignation "beside Spectres are trouble. Call me paranoid."

Kaiden merely shook his head, sighed, and replied with "You're paranoid. The Council helped fund this project; they have a right to send someone to keep an eye on it." Joker's response was instantaneous "Yep, that is the official story, but only an idiot believes the official story." With that, both Graham and Mike made their presence known.

"You worry too much" they said, words perfectly in sync, their voices a near perfect match. The effect was so effective that both Kaiden and Joker's heads snapped round to face them (albeit slower with Joker, due to his slight disability) their eyes wide.

"Jesus guys" Joker sighed, leaning back in his chair, his face one of relief and slight frustration "do you know how creepy that is? I mean, seriously, it sounded like God just walked through the door and tapped me on the shoulder." They grinned at that last comment, their faces mirror images of each other. Kaiden merely smiled and shook his head.

"Sorry Joker, should have warned you" he said, shooting a glare or false annoyance at the twins "one thing these two love to do most is scare the living ! #$%^&* out of people." And with that, the brothers burst in gales of raucous laughter, their voices booming down the corridor to the CIC behind them, attracting the curious stares of some crewmembers. Joker merely sighed in mock despair, saying "Well, next time you feel the need to do that, could you at least warn us?"

Graham and Mike both stopped laughing and stared at their pilot, Graham faking confusion and Mike grinning like an idiot. "Where's the fun in that?" Graham asked rhetorically, making Mike grin all the wider.

The intercom crackled into life and Anderson's voice boomed "Joker, status report!"

Joker quickly spun round to face his console and replied "All systems green captain, we're looking good up here."

Anderson responded immediately "Good, tell Shepard to meet me in the debriefing room, that's both of them" Joker turned in his seat to them.

"Hear that guys? You're wanted." They nodded and headed off. Joker turned back to the comm and said "Roger that, they're on their way. Might want to look out sir, I think Nihlus was headed your way."

The irate reply of "He's already here Lieutentant" caused Joker to shake his head in frustration. The twins walked quickly to the designated room, but when they opened the door they didn't see Anderson anywhere. Instead Nihlus stood the centre of the room, his back towards them.

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"Commander Shepard" he said, turning around to addressing the pair "I was hoping you two would get here first, it would give us time to talk." Graham and Michael glanced at each other, the same look of concern in their eyes.

"What about?" Graham asked, his eyes flashing dangerously. Nihlus raised his hands in a placating gesture, his obsidian eyes twinkling slightly.

"Peace Commander, I mean you no harm. I merely wished to talk about this world we're going to, Eden Prime, I here it's quite beautiful." Again the twins shared a confused glance. Was this why they had been called here?

"We wouldn't know, we've never been there." They replied simultaneously, causing Nihlus' face to break into the turian equivalent of a grin. _It seems the rumours about these two were right after all_ he thought; still amazed by the twins' apparent ability to read each other's minds.

"It's become something of a symbol for your people hasn't it? Proof that Humanity can colonize and defend its interests?" he turned to the door as it hissed open and Anderson walked in, his brow furrowed with worry. "Is the Alliance really ready for this?" he asked, his flanged voice full of doubt.

Graham and Michael turned to stare at Anderson in utter confusion. _What the hell is going on?_ They thought, their minds abuzz with questions.

Anderson strode towards them and said "I think it's about time we tell the Commanders what's really going on." his voice carrying the finality of a prison sentence. Graham once again glanced at Mike, his look translating as:

_What. The. ! #$%^&*?_

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"Mind explaining what's going on here sir?" Mike asked, his eyes full of the same frustrated confusion as Graham's. Anderson sighed and brought his dark-skinned hand across his brow, wiping off the small accumulation of sweat there.

"This is more than a simple shake-down run." Mike and Graham nodded, whilst they desperately tried to rein in their joyous surprise of being right again.

"I thought as much." Mike whispered in Graham's ear, causing his brother to utter a snort of amusement. "We're making a covert pickup on Eden Prime." Anderson continued, his eyes sparkling with amusement at the twins' reaction. "Some of the science teams stationed there found a Prothean beacon buried there."

Mike's eyes widened in surprise, and Graham's jaw dropped. Nihlus then said "This goes beyond mere human interests Commanders; this is now the interest of every race in Citadel space."

Graham shot the Spectre a withering glance, his glare showing his frustrated annoyance at being talked to like a teenager. "I know what new Prothean tech means, _sir_" he sneered out the last word "and I also know why you're here. You think we haven't noticed you every time we turn around? You think we can't put two and two together?"

Nihlus recoiled like he had just been slapped, his carefully laid out plan falling to pieces. "I am a patient man Nihlus, but I do not, DO NOT, approve of being stalked like a wild animal for Spectre assessment, I think both Mike and I have earned a little more respect than that." Mike stepped forward so he was shoulder-to-shoulder with his brother, a symbol of their unity. Nihlus sighed and glanced at Anderson, who had started to visibly glow with something akin to parental pride.

"You knew" the turian breathed "you knew all along and you didn't give anything away." He suddenly grinned and laughed a hearty laugh, making Graham and Mike stare at him in confusion. Even Anderson seemed slightly bemused.

"Care to share the joke Nihlus?" the captain asked, his left eyebrow raised in silent question. The turian have to lean on the wall to regain his breath before he said "I had researched everything on these two, their likes, their dislikes, every detail I could get my hands on. Then they go and pull a stunt like this, and all my research goes out the airlock." Anderson then started chuckling, his deep baritone rolling across the room. His laugh was infectious, for soon everyone was laughing their heads off; their gales of raucous laughter were heard outside in the CIC.

But their humorous reverie was shattered when Joker announced "Captain, we have a problem."

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Everyone grew deadly serious as Anderson replied. "What is it Joker?" he said, his voice slightly worried.

There was a faint crackle of static as Joker's worry brimmed voice said "Message from Eden Prime, sir. You need to see this."

Anderson activated the holo-screen inside the chamber and said "Bring it up on screen." They were greeted with the sight of a battle, with Alliance marines fighting an unknown enemy, and they were losing. They were being cut down in droves by some sort of plasma weapon.

Suddenly a female marine in phoenix armour dashed up to the cameraman and yelled "Get down!" before shoving him to the ground and unloading a short burst from her assault rifle.

As bullets exploded around them one of the marines, presumably the commander, faced the camera and said "We need evac. They're attacking everything- Argh! –came out of nowhere. We need-" but was cut off as a bullet slammed into his shoulder. Then a horribly low screech sounded across the entire battlefield and through the ships speakers, causing the four to clutch their ears in felt like their skulls were about to split open. All the marines stopped firing to stare up at the sky in horrified awe, and the camera turned in the direction of their stares.

What those in the briefing room saw next made their jaws drop.

A huge metallic…thing descended out of the clouds, red eldritch lightning dancing across its hull, looking for all intents and purposes like the hand of God descending from High Heaven, it's finger-like appendages opened like the hand of Doom to cover the land. Then the fighting returned in full force, with the attackers redoubling their efforts, then their feed dissolved into a cloud of static.

"Everything cuts out after that, no comm traffic at all" Joker commented, his voice slightly flat over the comm "just goes dead." Anderson then said "Reverse and pause at 36.9" and the image returned to that baleful metallic hand. The captain had the look of man who had just swallowed four lemons at once. Nihlus merely stood there, his turian face unreadable. Mike just stood there, his mouth agape, his eyes wide as saucers. Graham took one look at the screen and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Mike demanded, his voice concerned. Graham snapped around, nailing his brother with a burning glare.

"The armoury" he snarled "This ! #$%^&* just got real" then stormed out, his rage emanating from him in large, roiling waves. Mike merely swallowed. Graham had gotten this angry once before, and that what during the final days of the Blitz. He was right; this ! #$%^&* had, indeed, just got real.


	4. Chapter 4- Destiny Beckons Part 1

**Well, I've decided to re-write the fourth chapter, mainly because it made NO sense to me when re-reading it. So, here it is: read it, review it and most importantly, ENJOY!**

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Normandy swept in low over the battered landscape of Eden Prime, the light of multiple fires glinting off her sliver hull, her engines an inaudible hum.

Graham sat in the cargo hold watching as the rest of his team, consisting of Kaiden and Private Laskey, suiting up, his Lancer assault rifle in hand, the stock against his knee. His helmet hid most of his face from the others, which meant they couldn't see the pale parlour of his skin, nor the wild look in his eyes through his visor.

This was common for him, a bout of pre-combat madness before his fine-tuned instincts kicking in. He heard the hiss of the rear doors opening, and turned to see Anderson, Mike, two other marines, including Jenkins, and Nihlus stroll in, the latter four clad in combat gear and body armour.

Mike saw Graham sitting on one of the ammo crates and waved, a cheesy grin plastered all over his face. Upon seeing the carefree and almost childish look on his brother's face, Graham couldn't help but burst out laughing, his low baritone voice rolling across the cargo hold like a bullet, but much less lethal.

Everyone aside from Anderson glanced at the pair, confused as to their sudden outburst. Nihlus just sighed and shrugged, thinking it was just another of their quirks.

"Approaching drop point one" Joker's voice said over the comm, his tone flat through the speakers. With a dull roar the cargo bay crawled open, fierce winds whipping through as the internal and external pressures equalized. Everyone turned to stare at Nihlus as he checked his weapons and, with shotgun in hand, headed for the ramp.

"Nihlus? You coming with us?" Jenkins asked, eying the turian curiously. He shook his head as he did a final check of his shotgun.

"I move faster on my own" he explained, before leaping into the void. The others stared after him, jaws agape as his sudden display of acrobatics.

Graham just shrugged and said "Well, now that piece of entertainment is out of the way, let's get on with the job at hand shall we?" and strolled back into the bowels of the ship.

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Mike followed him, his jaw closing with an audible snap.

Graham unlocked his items locker, rummaged through the sparse compartment, and pulled out two compact-but-powerful Stiletto pistols, along with an Elkoss Combine's SMG, which he passed into Mike's waiting hand. He sealed the locker, stood up, and holstered his pistol and threw Mike the other just as Joker said "Approaching drop point two."

They glanced at each, an unspoken message transmitted in under a second: _Keep your ass alive_. They both nodded, the message received and understood, and proceeded to prepare their individual teams. As the ramp lowered, the two teams stood side-by-side, Graham and Mike at the head.

When the pressure light flashed green they took off running, flinging themselves into the void below. Graham laughed with joy, delighting in the sensation of free-fall, his arms spread wide. They landed with a slight thud, the shock-absorbers in their boots and greaves making the fall seem like a mere hop than a hundred foot drop. Graham's head snapped up with his rifle, his eyes scanning the terrain for any sign of movement. Behind him Mike did the same, his SMG held ready, his finger held lightly on the trigger.

"Area clear Commander" Kaiden's voice said over the comm, his tone completely deadpan.

Mike opened his omni-tool and called up a map of their surroundings. "Okay, here we are" he said, gesturing to the small collection of blue dots at the bottom of the screen "and here's our objective." A green arrow appeared in the top-right corner. He shut down the omni-tool and turned back to the others and said "Bear in mind that this is only a rough estimate of the beacon's actual location, so it could be anywhere in that area."

Graham nodded, his eyes burning beneath his helmet, and ordered "Move out" before jogging towards a nearby road towards the colony.

Suddenly Nihlus' voice crackled over the radio "I'm seeing serious action here Shepard" he whispered, his voice tingled with worry "a _lot_ of bodies."

Graham glanced behind him and saw the pale faces of the others, whilst feeling the blood drain from his own.

"What kind of… _monster_ butchers people like that?" The thought was on everyone's mind, but it was Jenkins that put it into words. Silence reigned over the group as they advanced. The hairs on the back of Graham's neck began to raise, a sign that his subconscious was tapping him on the shoulder as saying 'Something's not right.'

He stopped dead still and raised his fist, a signal to the others to stop. Everyone stopped, like robots with their power sources removed. Mike glanced at his brother, a questioning eyebrow raised. Graham mouthed 'trust me' and scanned the surrounding forest, stretching every sense to its limit. Mike sighed and raised his SMG to his shoulder, sapphire eyes meticulously going over every inch of terrain, ears straining to make out every noise around them. It was then that he picked up a faint hum, similar to that of the Normandy's engines, only in a much higher registry.

"Graham…" he warned, his voice betraying his fear, his eyes darting around them for the source. His brother snapped around to stare at him, his eyes wide, his face questioning.

"What did you…" he started to say, but then the humming got louder and his rifle swung towards the source, somewhere behind a small clump of trees. "Jenkins, Laskey, Kaiden" Graham motioned with his rifle and the two marines leapt to obey, weapons held ready, faces blank and alert. They crouched on opposite sides of the clump, their backs pressed against the trunks of three nearby trees. When Graham nodded, they shouldered through the brush, smashing their way across the entire width of the five yard patch, leaving a definite trail in their wake.

Graham and Mike followed behind them, scanning every inch of shrub as they passed; now sure that something was out there. Suddenly there was a cry of "Contact!" and the sound of bullets flying…followed by a very familiar high-pitched hum. Both brothers' eyes widened in horror and they bolted towards the sounds of battle.

What they saw next would haunt them for the rest of their lives.

They saw Laskey and Kaiden leaning behind a large boulder, with Jenkins next to them, slumped on the ground and clutching a bleeding shoulder.

Their attackers were three drones of sorts, with what looked like a small machine guns slung underneath their chassis. They flitted around the battlefield like houseflies, and were almost as impossible to hit.

With a great roar Graham let loose a great burst from his assault rifle, filling the air with lead. The lethal cloud sped towards the drones and slammed into the first one with the force of a sledgehammer, shattering its silver casing and shredding the circuitry within. As it fell, the other two quickly swung round and opened fire on the twins, their guns blazing like candles. Mike yanked Graham behind the cover of a nearby boulder, barely missing a burst of fire from their opponents.

"Can't you do anything?" Gray wheezed; his breath erratic after being slammed into fifty tonnes of stone.

"Maybe" Mike muttered, eyeing the drones warily "give me a second." He quickly opened his omni-tool and typed furiously, his fingers flying across the keys, his eyes mere slits as he gazed intently at the display. Then, with a cry he swung round and, pointing his left hand at one of the drones, fired a great burst of binary, its passage marked the static shriek in the team's radios. The drone shuddered and wavered in the air, its systems slowly losing power, until it fell, lights dark, from the sky and ploughed a small trench into the ground.

The final drone buzzed around the trees and tried to fly up into the canopy, but not before Kaiden gave a great cry and flung his arm in a wrenching motion. His entire body flared blue and a huge biotic throw shot from his hand towards the drone. As it collided with the android, the throw forced it down, towards a nearby tree. It slammed into the trunk with the force of a missile, causing it to shatter into a thousand silver slivers and a cloud of shrapnel. An assembled sigh escaped the group as the last drone fell, and they all slumped to the ground. It was then that Jenkins gave himself the luxury of passing out.

"Normandy, need evac for wounded" Graham said over the radio whilst Kaiden and Mike stabilized Jenkins' condition; and Laskey and Rodriguez, the other marine in Mike's team, patrolled a hastily constructed perimeter, scanning for any sign of movement. "Rodger that Commander, ETA two minutes" came the reply. Satisfied, Graham closed the channel and walked over to the improvised cot on which Jenkins lay.

"How is he?" he asked, glancing down at the bloody remains of the marine's left shoulder.

"Not good, but stable" Kaiden replied, checking his vitals on his omni-tool. Graham nodded and knelt beside Jenkins as he stirred.

"Sorry about that Commander" he coughed; his face pale from the loss of blood "not one of my finer moments." Graham clasped the marine's hand, a silent show of comfort and support.

"No, I don't suppose it was" he said, his tone jovial but his gaze serious "just try not to repeat this too many times will you? I'd be kinda hard-pressed to find another marine as enthusiastic as you." That earned him a brief chuckle and a grin, which was what he was aiming for. He patted Jenkins on his good shoulder as Normandy roared overhead, its silver silhouette a welcome sight.

As the cargo bay door hissed open, six medics rushed down with a stretcher and hoisted Jenkins onto it as gently as they could.

Graham watched them leave, and his throat tightened as Jenkins waved to him as the ramp closed. Bravely, with a great force of will, he turned his back on the ascending frigate and walked stiffly to the front of the team, his rifle held tightly in his hands.

"Ok, we know our objective" he said, his voice tense and sharp "we know our enemy, and we're on a time limit, so no time for sight-seeing. So get in, secure the beacon, and get out. Move out."

* * *

For the next twenty the marines trekked across the plains of Eden Prime towards the main colony, completely silent save for their heavy breathing. Everyone strained their senses to the limit, determined not to be ambushed again.

Suddenly they heard the sound of running feet, followed by the hum of drones, and they dived into a nearby clump of trees. As they watched with baited breath, a female marine dashed past, pursued by two gun drones, their guns blazing. Graham recognised her as the marine from the video they saw on the Normandy earlier, and felt Mike stir next to him.

As they looked on, three bullets slammed into her shields, forcing her to the ground. Graham quickly grabbed Mike by the arm to stop him from leaping to her rescue; poor sod always had a flare for the dramatic. Then, before anyone could react, she snatched her pistol from its holster and shot both drones out of the sky with two shots, each one fired less than a second apart and with extreme accuracy.

"Wow." Mike breathed, his eyes glued on the marine's slender figure "Girl's got style." That made Graham chuckle slightly; of all the places to develop a crush, Mike had to choose the middle of a potentially lethal battle-zone. Then, as the marine rose, they heard a strange clicking warble coming from nearby.

What they saw next made horrified them all.

* * *

They saw three robots, roughly humanoid in design except for their elongated necks and strange flashlight style heads, bending a colonist backwards over what appeared to be some sort of altar or medical device, carefully placing his chest over the centre of the device.

Then, quite suddenly, a twelve foot spike shot up, impaling the poor colonist through the chest, killing him instantly.

Everyone heard the gasp of horror that escaped the marine's lips as her eyes widened to the size of saucers. Unfortunately, so did the robots. They spun round, unnaturally fast, and raised their strange assault rifles.

The marine took one look at the weapons and started running towards a nearby outcrop of stone, drawing her own rifle from her back. Graham looked back at the marines behind him and drew a finger across his neck, the signal for slitting throats, or in this case severing power cables. They all raised their guns to their shoulders, eyes hardening as their targets came into view.

Just as the robots passed them, Graham let out an earth-shattering roar of "FIRE!" and suddenly the air was filled with gunfire and bullets. The robots, despite their superior reflexes, had no time to react or even move as bullets riddled their frames, reducing them to little more than piles of scrap metal.

Mike leapt out from behind the trees, SMG blazing, and positioned himself between the cowering marine and the robots, his eyes burning as he gazed down the sight. Once the robots had been well and truly shredded, the group stepped out of cover and Graham approached Mike, who was busy comforting the poor woman. She snapped to attention as Graham approached, and Mike stepped to stand by his brother's shoulder.

"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212" the marine said between laboured breaths, her escapade obviously having exhausting her "are you in charge in sir?" Graham and Mike exchanged an amused glance, and Graham stepped back to let Mike take charge of the situation.

"Are you wounded Williams?" he asked, his eyes scanning over her slim yet obviously muscular frame.

"Nothing major" she replied, her face flushed, from the exertion or from Mike's staring no one knew "Oh man, we were on patrol when the attack hit" she had turned away to stare towards the horizon, her face hidden by shadow "at first we heard nothing, then the geth swarmed us." Graham could plainly hear the grief in her voice, and it made his chest tighten in sympathy.

But then the implications of what she'd just said hit him. _Geth? As in, the weird AI-robots-that-haven't-been-seen-in-three-hundred- years type Geth? _He turned to look at Kaiden and the others, noting the same look of bafflement on their faces.

* * *

"The geth haven't been seen outside the Veil for three hundred years, why attack now?" Kaiden asked, voicing the question on everyone's minds.

Ashley just shrugged and said "They must've come for the beacon. The dig site's at the other end of this trench." She gestured with her rifle down the valley. Graham nodded, and motioned for the others to go on ahead. As Mike passed, Graham grabbed him by the arm and pulled him closer.

"Be careful brother" he whispered "just because you can doesn't mean you should." Mike nodded in understanding, the message about Ashley and himself clear as glass. They quickly glanced at the woman in question, watching as she walked down the trench, her hips swaying seductively under her armour.

Graham watched as a familiar dreamy expression washed over Mike's face, his eyes unfocused. "Good luck" he muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes. Mike quickly glanced at him.

"What?" he asked, bemused.

"Good luck on wooing her and not getting discharged." Graham explained "I think you're gonna need it." A sly grin spread over his face. "But, if you should succeed, I'll…" he leant over and whispered something in Mike's ear, and watched as his face turned beetroot red and his eyes widened in horror.

Laughing, Graham took off down the trench so Mike couldn't catch him…and ran head first into a hail of gunfire. He landed heavily on his side, grunting as he felt the plates in his shoulder pads crumple.

Keeping low to the ground, he propped his rifle on his left forearm and fired a short burst at the nearby geth trooper, hitting it straight on its 'head' if you could call it that.

He noticed all the other marines were also firing at the geth further up the gorge, and he could hear the sounds of return fire from farther off. He staggered to his feet just as Mike appeared behind him, wrapping a tree-trunk sized arm around his brother's waist to support him.

"Next time, keep your head down." Mike advised sagely, his SMG spitting death at the offending geth. Graham grunted and stumbled up the gorge until he came to the dig site, which was guarded by four troopers.

Foregoing subtly, he pulled a high-explosive grenade from his belt and lobbed it with a casual flick of his wrist, and watched as it blew all four geth to shrapnel, a grim smile on his face and his hand shaking violently.

It was only after all that that he noticed the blood pouring down his arm, and followed by cries of alarm from the others, he fell into darkness, letting it envelope him.


	5. Chapter 5- Destiny Beckons Part 2

**It's here bitches! Chapter 5 of Double Trouble is finally up! After battling off my parents and exam season, I finally managed to finish it off and, well, here you go! Please review this, any and all constructive criticism is welcome, as well as any reviews. So please, read, review and enjoy**

* * *

"Shepard to Normandy, need immediate evac" Mike yelled into his radio.

He had dragged Graham to the remains of the dig site and tried to stem the bleeding to the best of his ability, yet it seemed the wound was as stubborn as its victim, still bleeding profusely.

All he received from the radio was an earful of static. "Normandy, respond."

Once again, nothing. He frowned with concern, this was serious.

If Normandy couldn't contact them, then how could they locate them for extraction?

He quickly glanced down at his brother's prone form whose wounds were being tended to by Kaiden and Ashley, methodically cleaning the bullet wound in his shoulder and stemming the blood flow.

"Okay, apply pressure to the wound for as long as possible" Kaiden said, his tone clipped and precise "I'm gonna try and wake him up."

Whilst Ash clamped her hand over the wound like the seals on an airlock door, Kaiden began the slow process of prodding Graham back to consciousness.

He began to systematically send small bursts of electricity through Graham's suit, each burst lasting less than a second. They watched as his limbs spasmed after each jolt, every muscle in his body contracting rapidly.

Mike watched with baited breath as Graham's face twitched, and his eyes flickered behind his eyelids, as though dreaming.

"Again" he ordered, hoping to God that this wouldn't send Graham into shock just as he woke up.

Another series of electric pulses shot through Graham's body, and he groaned slightly, his head turning ever-so slightly.

They waited anxiously as he turned in his half-stupor, half way between unconscious-and-conscious thought.

A sudden horrifying vision flashed through Mike's mind: _He stood in the CIC of the Normandy, hands bound behind his back as he was escorted to the airlock, the sneers and shouts from the crew ringing like harsh bells in his ears 'You killed him!' some shouted, although he couldn't tell from where, 'You left him to die!". _

_When he reached the airlock, the guard nodded and punched the access panel. As Mike walked through, the guard took off his helmet just as the door started to close. _

_Just as the guard shrank from view, Mike saw two familiar storm-grey eyes glaring at him, accusing him, with a clear message in their depths. _

_**You let me die**__._

* * *

Finally Graham let out a long sigh, and his eyes fluttered open as Mike snapped back to reality.

"What happened?" he asked, placing a hand on his throbbing temples as he stood up.

Kaiden let out a pent-up breath, Ashley's face lit up like a Christmas tree, and Mike merely grabbed Graham in a bear hug.

"Wow, was I out that long?" Graham asked, slightly surprised by Mike's actions.

Mike released a half-laugh, half-sob into his brother's shoulder, and felt the tears he had tried so hard to stop begin to fall as images from his vision returned.

Graham simply wrapped his arm around his shoulders in a comforting gesture and sighed, resting his head on Mike's.

Kaiden looked at Ash and gestured with his head to give the brothers some space and stepped back, with Ashley following suit to give them their family moment.

The twins simply stood there, surrounded by metallic corpses with their roles reversed from their exit from Arcturus Station, this time Graham being the rock for Mike to cling to as the torrent of emotions he had bottled up was released.

Once Mike's tears had run dry, their radio crackled and heard Nihlus say "Got some strange readings coming from a small space-port up ahead Shepard, gonna check it out. Rendezvous with you there."

As the radio fell silent, Graham eased Mike off his shoulder, gently placed his discarded SMG back into his hand, and said "Buck up marine, we've got a job to do."

Mike nodded slightly, his fingers slowly curling around the gun's handle with his index finger resting lightly on the trigger, the familiar action stilling the hammering of his heart.

Graham lightly slapped Mike on the shoulder, and stumbled over to where Kaiden and Laskey stood surveying the surroundings, and where Rodriguez sat slumped against a tree asleep, leaving Mike and Ashley alone. Slowly, almost nervously, she edged towards him, her hands clasped in front of her, her eyes downcast.

"So" she began, her voice little more than a whisper, "how you holding up?" Mike chuckled quietly, his normally-booming voice reduced to a mere murmur.

"I should be asking _you_ that question." He replied, turning to look into the marine's hazel eyes, his gaze penetrating yet gentle, his sapphire orbs as blue as the Thessian seas.

Ash felt her face burn and turned away, hoping he wouldn't see the blush spreading across her cheeks. His quiet chuckle caused her blush to deepen, and when she looked at him again his face was split in a wide grin, his eyes sparkling in their sockets.

She heard a series of chuckles from behind her, and turned to see Graham, Kaiden and Laskey desperately trying to restrain their laughter.

Trying to retain some dignity, she punched Mike on the shoulder and stormed off up a nearby ramp.

As he watched the woman walk away, Graham's laughter bubbled up from his chest like magma, emerging in a booming chuckle that echoed down the trench, filling the air with his mirth.

That started a chain-reaction, with Kaiden venting his laughter to the sky, his head flung back like he had just been shot, and poor Laskey falling over with glee, tears streaming down his face and his body rolling like a tree branch caught in a hurricane.

Mike's face went as red as a fresh tomato and he turned to leave when they all heard Ashley scream.

* * *

Mike acted without thought, sprinting up the slope towards one of the archaeological buildings, with Graham and the others hot on his heels, weapons primed and ready.

When they rounded the corner their blood turned to ice and their eyes widened to saucers. Ashley lay on the ground, surrounded by more strange spikes, with what appeared to be a greatly-implanted human pinning her to the dirt. It looked human, but its skin was a dark blue and multiple wires crawled across its entire body; torso, head and limbs.

Its back was hunched as if it had knotted its spine innumerable times, and its mouth hung open in a soundless scream, whilst zombie-like moans escaped as it breathed.

Worst of all were its eyes, mere clusters of blue lights that stared blanking at their surroundings, reflecting the soulless nature of their owners, only husks of their former selves.

With a savage roar Mike kicked the 'husk', as he later dubbed them, off Ashley's chest and fired a prolonged burst from his SMG into its head, causing it to explode like an overripe melon. He looked down and flashed Ash a cocky grin.

"Need a hand?" he asked, extending a hand to help her up. Rolling her eyes she grasped the outstretched limb and blushed as he effortlessly pulled her to her feet, placing his free hand on her shoulder to steady her, whilst her right hand found its way onto his chest. Still blushing, she shyly glanced up to stare into his eyes, her blush deepening as he smiled down at her, a gentle smile like a sunbeam.

Before Ashley could embarrass herself further, the sound of metal on metal filled their ears, like swords being drawn, and several of the spikes descended, the bodies sliding off and standing up, like horrific parodies of men, moaning as if in great pain.

"Oh God!" Kaiden breathed, his face as white as fresh snow "They're still alive!" Mike felt Ashley stiffen beside him, and glanced at her face, her eyes wide and terrified like a child's.

"What did the geth do to them?" she whispered, her voice strong despite her obviously horrified expression.

Everyone's weapon snapped up in perfect sync (a fluke they would joke about for years to come) to cover the monstrosities as they shambled towards them.

With a gesture from Graham they unleash a tidal wave of lead upon the husks, shredding them like meat in the food blender.

As the last husk fell, Graham felt an ominous shiver run up his spine; a sign from his subconscious that something was wrong somewhere nearby. On this hunch he drew his sniper rifle and scanned the area, his eye alert for any and all changes in the surroundings.

Seeing nothing unusual, he slung his sniper and opted for his trusty Lancer and headed on, the others flanking him with Mike on his immediate left.

Suddenly a deafening retort of a gunshot was heard and everyone froze, their eyes darting wildly around to find the source of the shot.

Not seeing anything, they advanced carefully, checking every shadow for their mysterious gunman, their eyes flicking like searchlights while one question burned into their brains.

_What happened here?_

* * *

Soon, after a tension-filled walk and a dozen dead geth troopers and husks, they reached the space-port.

They approached warily, fingers on triggers, eyes probing every inch of space.

And then they saw him. Nihlus Kryik, the mighty Spectre, with a single bullet hole through his head, his once-noble eyes staring blankly at the sky above, his mighty frame sprawled across the steel plate like an animal corpse.

"Commander" Kaiden said, his voice soft and saddened "it's Nihlus."

The twins approached the turian with something akin to reverence, their eyes downcast and their heads bowed as they knelt down beside him.

"A turian?" Ash asked, an eyebrow slightly raised in question "You knew him?" Kaiden nodded and replied with "He was with us on the Norman-" but before he could finish, the sound of falling crates interrupted him. Six gun barrels snapped up in that direction, Graham and Mike glaring intently at something hidden behind the crates.

"Come out where we can see you!" Graham shouted, his voice strong and clear as the twins rose from their place at Nihlus's side.

At his words, a lone figure detached itself from the shadow of the crates and walked out into the open.

"A civilian?" Mike wondered aloud, his eyes wandering over the man's form, taking in every detail from his stance to the way his eyes moved.

"Don't shoot! I'm one of you!" he cried, raising his hands in surrender, his eyes wide and terrified.

Graham glanced at Mike and nodded, whilst signalling for the others to lower their weapons.

"What happened here?" Mike demanded, his sapphire eyes flashing dangerously, his frustration mounting.

The dockworker shuddered slightly before saying "Your friend here" whilst indicating Nihlus "came down here guns blazing, which isn't surprising considering the circumstances, but then he saw the other one and he let his guard down."

Everyone quirked an eyebrow at that last part. "Other one? What other one?" Graham asked, his voice filled with confusion.

The dockworker scratched the back of his neck before saying "Another turian, he referred to him as 'Saran'. I…I think they knew each other. Anyway, they talked for a bit then Saran just…shot him, right through the brain."

Graham and Mike paled rapidly, their eyes widening and a synchronized gasp escaping their lungs.

The dockworker continued on, completely oblivious to their reactions "After he shot the other guy he got the train and headed towards the transport depot."

The twin's heads snapped round to look at the small train that lay at the station below them, the same idea forming in their minds.

"Thanks for the info" Mike said before darting towards the train, the gears of his brain already whirring into life, his engineer's mind already formulating some form of clever and devilish plan.

Graham only smiled and shook his head, before sprinting after his brother, the thud of his boots on the metal decking a sure sign he had caught on to Mike's plan, with the others in pursuit.

As they rounded the corner they were immediately ambushed by a host of geth troopers, some of which were immediately cut down by the two teams' combined fire, and once again the twins darted forward again, running shoulder-to-shoulder down the boardwalk, their faces mirror images of the same determination that could rouse entire planets to their call.

As they pelted down the last section of the descent they heard a loud electronic screech, and looked up in horror as the geth destroyer barrelled toward them.

"Kaiden!" Graham bellowed into his radio "We could use some help over here!"

They heard a cry of exertion from above them, and watched as the biotic lift Kaiden threw sent the destroyer spinning aimlessly into the sky, its arms flailing wildly.

The twins looked at each other and, as one, drew their pistols and fired a single synchronized shot into its head before beckoning the others; that had spent the time whilst they were occupied; fighting off all the troopers they had run past.

As soon as they were all on the train, Graham elbowed the controls that sent the train hurtling towards the final part of their trip: the transport depot and the beacon.

* * *

Just before they reached their destination, they heard a colossally low screech that made them claw at their ears in pain, and their jaws dropped as they saw what appeared to by an enormous metallic cuttlefish launching itself into the sky, its colossal bulk blocking the sun for a few moments until it cleared the planet's atmosphere and disappeared into the void.

As the ship disappeared, the sonic assault ceased and they all stood to gaze at the spot where the ship had been mere moments before. "Ok, what the HELL was that?" Ash demanded, her voice rising in exasperation.

Mike only murmured "I don't know, and I hope to God we never find out."

Everyone nodded their agreement; the mere thought of that thing sent a shiver down their spines.

Soon they arrived at the terminal, and they quickly piled out whilst sweeping the area, eyes alert for any enemy of any kind.

It was then that they noticed the large bomb at their feet.

"Demolition charge!" Mike bellowed whilst diving towards it, his hands flying across the panel trying to prevent the thing from detonating and taking half the colony with it.

"Spread out! Look for more charges!" Graham roared, his voice offering no rebuttal as he barrelled up the ramp to check the upper level, the other following suit and following in his wake.

"One over here!" Kaiden yelled whilst furiously trying to disarm it _and_ fight off geth at the same time.

"Another here!" Ashley cried, her fingers dancing across the screen as she deftly defused the bomb.

"Last one here!" Laskey shouted, before muttering "If only Jenkins were here, we'd be done in a second. Damn demolitions expert just HAD to get shot in the shoulder didn't he?"

With a final beep from Laskey's charge; and after everyone regrouped, with Mike simply climbing the scaffolding to get to them, they headed down to the beacon, killing anything in their way. Graham turned his back on the beacon and activated his radio.

"Normandy, the beacon is secure, awaiting extraction." Unbeknownst to him, Kaiden and Ashley had decided to get a closer look.

"This is incredible!" Kaiden exclaimed "Actual working Prothean technology!"

Ash however wasn't so enthusiastic.

"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up" She said, her voice slightly curious. "Something must've activated it."

Just as she reached to touch the beacon, it flared with a harsh emerald light and some strange force grabbed her and began to slowly drag towards it. Mike noticed first, his sharp eyes catching Ash's flailing arms.

"Ash!" he yelled, sprinting towards her and grabbing her by the waist and toss her out of reach.

At the same time, Graham noticed Mike's actions and also started running, his powerful legs carrying him much faster than he could think.

However, he could watch in horror as the force that had once held Ash grabbed his brother and began to drag him towards him.

"MIKE!" he roared, pounding his feet in the hope of saving his brother from whatever horrors the beacon could inflict on him.

But just as he reached to grab Mike's shoulder, the force seeming to clamp around his chest and pull him towards the beacon as well.

The others could only watch in horror as the twins were dragged inexorably closer to the pulsing beacon, their struggles useless against the currents against which they fought.

Then, quite suddenly, they were lifted into the air and suspended there, their heads cast back, their eyes scrunched tight shut as foreign images flooded their minds, scenes of carnage and death on an unimaginable scale.

They floated, side by side, as the beacon forced its message into their brains, burning it so deep that it would haunt them for the rest of their days.

Then, just as suddenly as it had started; the beacon exploded, shattering into thousands of pieces and sending both twins flying backwards to land unconscious next to Ashley and Kaiden.

They last thing either Shepards saw was the familiar shape of the Normandy swinging around to pick them up, until darkness engulfed them.

* * *

**Whew, that was a hard one. Anyway, review to your heart's content, any review is welcome, as long as it isnt a dickish comment or an attempt at trolling, they WILL be removed and their poster blocked. Next update might not be for a while, so please be patient and enjoy the ME goodness!**


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